To play a casino-style video game, such as an online casino-style video game, a player typically provides input to direct play of the game. A general purpose computing device that a player might use to access an online casino-style video game typically has general purpose input devices such as a keyboard and mouse. A problem with a general purpose input device is that it is not customized for use with a casino-style video game. A general purpose keyboard, for example, has a limited set of keys intended for general purpose use/input, e.g., an alphanumeric character set, navigational/cursor key set, function key set, etc. A general purpose input device does not have a specialized set of buttons, for example, for use with an online casino-style video game. Consequently and when using a general purpose input device with an online casino-style video game, a player must be able to adapt to using a general purpose input device in order to correctly provide input for playing the game.
Furthermore, most online casino-style gaming sites and/or online casino-style games require some form of authentication or information before permitting a user to play a game. A conventional input device is only able to forward signals representing the keys and/or buttons pressed by the user. For example, one conventional authentication approach requires the user to enter authentication information using an input device, e.g., a keyboard, such as a username and/or password. Such input is useful to authenticate the player. Other types or levels of authentication would be beneficial.
An input device for use by a player for accessing a casino-style video game provided by an online site or provider is desired.